Telent Technology Services

Reconomy and its customer, Telent Technology Services, have collaborated to generate social, environmental, and commercial value from the company’s used office furniture. The innovative solution was developed by Reconomy to further support Telent in delivering against its ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) targets, which include zero waste to landfill by 2025 and a 50% reduction in carbon by 2030. It quickly became apparent that a donation scheme for the digital infrastructure provider’s used office furniture would provide tangible benefits for multiple parties.

To facilitate the reuse scheme, Reconomy established a partnership with the charity, Waste to Wonder. Waste to Wonder’s entire business model is shaped around best practice in ethics and environmental sustainability. Their aims are to minimise waste, maximise educational opportunities, and support disadvantaged communities around the world through redistributed equipment. The partnership has ensured that furniture stock reaches people that really need it, including Global Orphans Empowerment Academy, Community Transport and Mokwe Development Association in Cameroon and Africa First in Senegal. In the UK furniture was also distributed to The Salvation Army and Community Transport Furniture, which helps people on low incomes, and in transitional stages in life, with quality furniture to furnish their homes.

When they have a project suitable for the scheme, Telent contacts the Reconomy team who implement a simple four stage process to survey, clear, redistribute the stock, and provide a detailed report. Initially, a full site audit with photographs is undertaken and an inventory populated. The goods and inventory are then assessed to see where they can provide the greatest benefit. Stock is carefully removed, and the premises left in a pristine condition. The goods are then redistributed through Waste to Wonder’s charity network to those in need. Any damaged stock that cannot be repaired is recycled and utilised for spare parts. Waste to Wonder then report back on the CO₂ saving, social value generated, and the weight of stock that has been prevented from going to landfill or incineration.

The partnership has grown quickly over the last 12 months with six large projects completed to date.

Goods redistributed include desks, chairs, draws, pedestals, whiteboards, stationary, cutlery, cabinets, and IT equipment. To date over £66,000 of social value has been generated (calculated using Social Value UK’s Calculation Tool). There has also been a saving of over 64,000kg of carbon (calculated using Comprehensive Environmental Data Archive (CEDA)). In total more than 25,000kg of redundant stock has been prevented from being lost forever in landfill or incinerators.

The success of the project has seen Reconomy exploring other redundant items within Telent’s portfolio that could help change lives while also rolling out the scheme to other clients.